Best College Basketball Bets Today: NCAAB Picks for December 30

On Monday night, the now-14th-ranked, but soon to drop, Gonzaga Bulldogs (9-4) will look to bounce back after a narrow loss to the defensive-centric UCLA Bruins in their first conference matchup of the season against Pepperdine (6-8).

The slate on December 30th also features the No. 3 Iowa State Cyclones (10-1), who will face the new-look Colorado Buffaloes (9-2) in both team’s first Big 12 test this year.

Conference season is among us, which means frequent upsets, rivalry matchups, and knock-down, drag-out games every single night!

Which teams will come away with the win or, at least, cover the spread? Find our best college basketball picks today below for the Gonzaga vs. Pepperdine and Iowa State vs. Colorado games below!

Odds for today's college basketball are courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook. Place your bets at FanDuel and claim $250 in bonus bets with a $5 winning wager.

No. 14 Gonzaga @ Pepperdine

• Date: Monday, December 30

• Time: 10:00 pm EST

• Moneyline: Gonzaga -4500 | Pepperdine +1600

• Spread: Gonzaga -22.5 (-102) | Pepperdine +22.5 (-120)

• Total: Over 157.5 (-110) | Under 157.5 (-110)

All odds are available via FanDuel Sportsbook but are subject to change.

PICK: Pepperdine +22.5 (-120) at FanDuel

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After convincing ranked wins against the Baylor Bears and San Diego State Aztecs in two of their first four games of the season, it appeared that Gonzaga would be one of the frontrunners for a National Championship, especially considering all of the talent they brought back from last season and the cohesion that they all have together.

Beyond the handful of key returners from last season’s team, the Bulldogs also brought in a few highly sought after portal players, including Khalif Battle (Arkansas) and Michael Ajayi, who actually transferred from Pepperdine.

However, the ‘Zags have gone 4-4 in their past eight games, with losses to West Virginia, Kentucky, UConn, and UCLA.

Two of those games went to overtime, but they simply couldn’t shut the door.

Gonzaga had the opportunity to learn a lot from its non-conference schedule, including lessons on how to win late. Luckily for the Bulldogs, they won’t have many conference games in which they will have to utilize those lessons.

This game won’t be all that close, but Pepperdine should keep this one within 23 points.

The Waves have new leadership, with head coach Ed Schilling at the helm, and Schilling has them playing fast.

Stefan Todorovic has been one of the best scorers in the country, and with the way this Gonzaga team has been playing defense recently, he should be able to fill it up.

Moe Odum has also been one of the best distributors this season; his playmaking should help open up shots for Todorovic and company.

Without a defensive juggernaut like Anton Watson this season, Gonzaga has struggled to find an identity on that end of the floor, especially away from its home floor.

Gonzaga will get the win but Pepperdine should make it somewhat competitive.

No. 3 Iowa State @ Colorado

• Date: Monday, December 30

• Time: 9:00 pm EST

• Moneyline: Iowa State -520 | Colorado +385

• Spread: Iowa State -10.5 (-102) | Colorado +10.5 (-120)

• Total: Over 147.5 (-105) | Under 147.5 (-115)

All odds are available via FanDuel Sportsbook but are subject to change.

PICK: Iowa State -10.5 (-102) at FanDuel

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It is no surprise that Iowa State has been dominant to start the 2024-25 regular season after bringing back so many key contributors to what was already an elite basketball team last year.

The Cyclones are not quite the defensive juggernaut that they were during their 2023-24 campaign, as they ranked first in adjusted defensive efficiency (KenPom); however, they still boast the 14th-ranked defense in that same metric.

The biggest change in this team from last year to this one has been the drastic offensive improvements. 

While it was well known that Iowa State would turn into an incredible offensive team on its home floor, the Cyclones struggled on that end of the floor on the road.

This season has been quite the contrary thus far, as Iowa State now ranks third in adjusted offensive efficiency (KenPom), primarily due to its incredibly balanced and efficient attack, which features six players averaging 10 or more points per game.

Interestingly enough, this will be the second time that the Cyclones will be playing Colorado this season despite it being the first Big 12 game for both teams. This is because both teams participated in the Maui Invitational and found themselves in the fifth place game.

The first matchup between these two teams resulted in a 99-71 beatdown at the hands of the Cyclones, who only were in that game because of a narrow, two-point loss to the No. 2 team in the nation: Auburn.

While we can pick up some information from that game, it should also be noted that both teams were playing their third game in three days at that point, so fatigue could have been a huge factor for Colorado.

So, will this game look similar to the first outing, or can the Buffs keep this one close on their home floor?

It should be more of the same as the first time around in this one.

Colorado shot 42% from the field and 42% from behind the arc in the first game, as well as 94% from the free throw line, and still was pummeled by nearly 30 points. 

Expecting the 120th-ranked offense to produce at the same level against an elite defense is unreasonable.

After all, the Buffs are shooting just 30% from 3-point land in their past three games, which was their saving grace in that game. Colorado still ranks 319th in turnovers per game while the Cyclones ranks fifth in turnovers per game away from home.

Colorado might be 9-2, but this is not a typical 9-2 team. The Buffs lost way too much offensive talent from last season and have virtually no chance at keeping pace on that end of the floor with Iowa State.

The Big 12 is notorious for being a bloodbath every night, but this one shouldn’t be too close.